By Raliyah Stubbs, Staff Writer
If you were an avid Tik Tok user in 2016, then you know that it used to be called “Musical.ly.”From lip-syncing to your favorite songs to trying to learn the latest dance, there was always something exciting to watch. Now, 10 years later, the app has changed so much that it is hard to believe it started out that way.
Back in the day, Musical.ly was where everyone wanted to be. “Baby Ariel” and “Jacob Sartorius” were some of the biggest names on the app. People would watch their videos and try to recreate them. The duet feature made the app especially popular because you could make videos alongside other users, even celebrities!
Let’s not forget about the crown and the leaderboard! The crown was given to users who were popular on the app, while the leaderboard showed the users who were getting the most attention. Getting crowned or making the leaderboard was a big deal because it meant you were becoming a popular “Muser.” It was all part of the fun.
When Musical.ly merged into TikTok in 2018, things continued to change. By 2019, viral dances, challenges, and trending sounds were starting to take over the app. Everybody wanted to go viral, and it seemed like anyone could become famous from just one video. You did not need to be a celebrity or have thousands of followers already. Sometimes, all it took was one video that people enjoyed watching.
Today, TikTok is about a lot more than dancing and lip-syncing. If you scroll through your For You page, you might see a Get Ready With Me (GRWM) video, a story time, someone’s daily vlog, or a makeup tutorial. People share parts of their everyday lives, give advice, discuss their opinions, and talk about almost anything you can think of. The app has become a place where people can entertain others while also sharing their interests and experiences.
One of the biggest changes is influencer culture. Creators can now get paid to promote products, work with brands, and can make money from their videos. TikTok has also become a popular place to shop. With TikTok Shop, you can see something in a video and buy it without even leaving the app. Sometimes, a product becomes so popular that it feels like everybody suddenly must have it.
But does anybody else miss when TikTok was just for fun? Old TikTok had its own kind of excitement. People were learning dances, making duets, and laughing at videos without every other post feeling like an advertisement. Of course, today’s TikTok has its benefits, too. People can grow businesses, discover new interests, and even turn their hobbies into careers.
TikTok in 2026 is not the same app it was in 2016. Trends have changed, creators have changed, and even the way people use the app has changed. Whether old TikTok was better is up for debate, but those Musical.ly days will always be memorable for the people who experienced them. Sometimes, it really was just about making a video, having a laugh, and creating memories that would eventually become nostalgic.
